


Wreck it Freddy's

by Kapra90



Series: Wreck it Freddy's Series [1]
Category: Five Nights at Freddy's, Wreck-It Ralph (2012)
Genre: Crossover, F/M, Fanfiction, Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-11
Updated: 2015-09-10
Packaged: 2018-04-20 04:23:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4773380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kapra90/pseuds/Kapra90
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A new game is plugged in, and after meeting the protagonist, Mike, Vanellope convinces her friends to help her "babysit" the in game eatery while he gets some well needed rest. However, the core four soon find that this was the worst decision they made; if not their last. Will they be able to survive this hellish food establishment until the next quarter drop? Co-written by myself and FFN author Dixie Darlin!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meet the Faz Family

It was the end of yet another day at the arcade, and all the characters were making plans of how to spend the evening. Some new games had been plugged in, so when the core four met up, they went to GCS to introduce themselves and socialize. Vanellope looked around, pouting a bit when she noticed none of the characters were her age. She then spotted a young man across the room, around sixteen years old. She smiled, going up to him.

"Hi there!"

"GOOD GOD DON'T EAT ME-" The boy cried, but blinked when he saw Vanellope. "Uh... sorry... my nerves are a bit..." He cleared his throat. "H- Hi there. I'm Mike."

"Yeah... rough first week? I'm Vanellope VonSchweetz, the president of Sugar Rush! What game are you from?"

Mike gulped, glancing behind him for a moment. "Say... I have an... an appointment to make. Normally, I'm not supposed to be outside of my game even after hours... someone needs to watch the security cameras at ALL times."

Vanellope tilted her head. "What kind of place is it?"

"A uh... a restaurant. It's called..." Mike bit his lip. "Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria." He squeaked out.

Vanellope grinned. "That place sounds like a BLAST! I'll take the job off your hands, Mike! Let me just ask my buddy to help out!"

Mike's eyes widened. "W- Wait, you don't under-... stand..."

The little president put her hands on her hips, giving him one of her serious looks. "Listen, pal, did ya miss the part where I said I was a president? I run things all the time, a whole game!"

"Yeah, b-but-"

"You look completely frazzled!" Vanellope insisted. "You need a break, and my buddy Ralph and I are just the peeps to take care of your game while you're gone!"

Mike chewed at his thumbnail, his eyes full of worry. He really COULD use a break... "Um...your friend. He's not a little kid like you, is he?"

Vanellope laughed at that, holding her stomach. "Stinkbrain a kid? Pfft, nah, he's the biggest adult I know! His fists are like a hundred times my size!" She imitated Ralph's wrecking pose before busting into giggles.

"Well...if you say so." Mike gulped, feeling a little better about the situation. "So long as he's with you."

"Sure, how hard can watching a pizzeria be?"

Mike gulped. "You'd be surprised..." He blinked when he saw Ralph in the background… Vanellope wasn't kidding when she said his hands were big. He tugged on his shirt collar a bit when he saw her drag Ralph over towards him, Felix and Calhoun following behind as they wondered what all the fuss was about.

"Can we can we can we?" Vanellope begged her three older friends. "Pleeeeease?"

"What is it you want us to do, exactly?" Ralph rolled his eyes. "I do enough work during the day!"

"This guy Mike here wants us to help him watch these characters in a really fun restaurant! We may get free pizza, Ralph, and toys!"

Calhoun thought for a moment as she listened to Vanellope. "Hm... well, I do enjoy helping civilians... besides, while Vanellope and junkpile keep an eye on things, Felix and I can do our own... observing."

"Oh Tammy, shush!" Felix giggled, blushing deeply.

Ralph rolled his eyes once more. "Fine, I'll watch some boring pizza place for the night. But you owe me, uh... what's your name?"

Mike blinked at Ralph, taking a crumpled piece of paper out of his pocket and placing it into Ralph's hand. Raph took a closer look to see it was a payroll check for 120$.

"My one suggestion... keep your eyes peeled and listen to the prerecorded messages. And whatever you do... avoid being caught." Mike said, and without another word, he made a beeline straight to Dr. Mario's clinic.

Calhoun raised a brow as they watched the man practically run off. "Well he's a screwy one," she snorted. "Where do you find these whackjobs, princess cavity?"

"Hey, he just needs a break!" Vanellope was bouncing up and down excitedly. "Come on, guys, let's just go!"

A short time later, the four friends entered the establishment, taking a quick look around. Everything looked run-down and dirty, litter scattered about.

"Ugh, this place could use a little fixing up," Felix said as he observed the flickering lights hanging over them. "Not exactly welcoming."

"Yeah, kid, why'd you want to come in HERE?" Ralph asked, wrinkling his nose. "I'd rather be back in the brickpile than be here."

"Stop complaining, whiney babies!" Vanellope then spotted a poster of singing animals on the wall. "Oooh entertainment! They look fun!"

Calhoun raised a brow, looking around. "Hm... something seems off about this. I know it's after hours, but..." She was the first to enter the office, giving the room a quick look over. She located the phone with an answering machine attached. "Hey, that Mike guy said that we need to listen to these recordings." Felix was beside her, peeking out one of the doors to usher Vanellope and Ralph inside. Vanellope sat in the office chair, swiveling it around and giggling, and Ralph sat on a worn out leather couch. The room was a bit larger than it seemed, lucky for them. It was about ten minutes before midnight.

"Hey Ralph, are you sure Vanellope should be here all night? It's past her bedtime as it is..."

"Felix, I'm NINE, not five!" She pouted. "There is no way I'm falling asleep!"

Calhoun pressed the button on the recording machine, listening to the message.

"Hello? Oh, Hello! Uh, I wanted to record a message for you to help you get settled in on your first night. Um, I actually worked in that office before you, I'm finishing up my last week now as a matter of fact. So I know it can be a bit overwhelming, but I'm here to tell you: there's nothing to be worried about. Uh, you'll be fine, so let's just focus on getting you through your first night, okay? Uh, let's see... First there's an introductory greeting from the company that I'm supposed to read, eh, it's kind of a legal thing. You know…"

Calhoun tilted her head as she listened to the message. "Interesting…"

" _'Welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, a magical place for kids and grown-ups alike, where fantasy and fun come to life. Fazbear Entertainment is not responsible for damage to property or person. Upon discovering that damage or death has occurred, a missing persons report will be filed within 90 days or as soon as property and premises have been thoroughly cleaned and bleached, and the carpets have been replaced-'_  Blah, blah, blah. Now this might sound bad, I know, but there's really nothing to worry about. Uh, the animatronic characters here do get a bit quirky at night, but do I blame them? No! If I were forced to sing those same stupid songs for 20 years, and never got a bath? I'd probably be a bit irritable at night too. So remember: these characters hold a special place in the hearts of children, and we need to show them a little respect, right? Okay. So just be aware; the characters do tend to wander a bit. Uh, they're left in some kind of "free-roaming" mode at night, uhh, something about their servos locking up if they get turned off for too long. Uhh, they used to be able to walk around during the day, too, but then there was "the Bite of '87." Yeah. It's amazing that the human body can live without the frontal lobe, you know?"

Ralph had been too busy at first thinking about how he was going to waste the next six hours of his life stuck in some office with a hyperactive nine year old, as much as he cared for her. But at this point, certain points of the message caught his attention, and now he was listening a bit closely, glancing over at the blissfully unaware child giggling at the posters stuck to the bulletin board as an uneasy feeling crept over him.

"Uh, now concerning your safety: the only real risk to you as a night watchman here, if any, is the fact that these characters, uh, if they happen to see you after hours, probably won't recognize you as a person. They'll - They'll most likely see you as a metal endoskeleton without its costume on. Now, since that's against the rules here at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza they'll probably try to uh... forcefully stuff you inside a Freddy Fazbear suit. Um, now that wouldn't be so bad if the suits themselves weren't filled with cross-beams, wiring, and animatronic devices, especially around the facial area, so you can imagine how having your head forcefully pressed inside one of those could cause a bit of... discomfort... and death... uh, the only parts of you that would likely see the light of day again would be your eyeballs and teeth that would pop out the front of the mask. Yeah, they don't tell you these things when you sign up. But hey; first day should be a breeze. I'll chat with you tomorrow, uh, check those cameras, and remember to close the doors only if absolutely necessary. Gotta conserve power. Alright. Good night."

Everyone except for Vanellope was frozen in place as the tape finished, the eerie silence getting to them all. She had not really been listening to the recording, playing with a cupcake doll on the desk and being distracted. Calhoun however, had listened to the message intently down to the last detail, not liking the overall atmosphere it conveyed.

"That's it, I'm outta here," Ralph said quickly as he snatched Vanellope up by her hoodie and taking a step for the door, the child beginning to protect as she groped the air, trying to get the cupcake toy back.

"Oh come on, Wreck-It," Calhoun huffed with a humorous grin, trying to hide her own growing conerns. "You really believe that ghost story?"

"Yeah, it's just a joke or something," Vanellope added while she was tossed onto Ralph's shoulder, though her wavering voice betrayed her brave stance as she finally began to notice everyone else's uneasiness.

"You think this is a joke?" Ralph laughed in disbelief. "Take a look around, guys! This is a horror game! Not some cutesy restaurant like Tapper's or Burger Time. This place is designed to kill us!"

"It's after-hours though, Ralph," Felix pointed out, though he stuck close to Calhoun just in case. "Nothing's going to happen to us NOW."

"And what if these... these things…" Ralph spat out, not knowing the proper terminology for the animatronics, "… are like cybugs, huh? What if they just eat and kill and that's all they know?"

Before anyone could answer his question, all of the main lights shut off, and the sound of the main power shutting down was immediately followed by the sound of a temporary battery source clicking on. Felix jumped a bit when suddenly, as the clock read exactly five minutes before midnight, an announcement played over an intercom, a friendly female voice speaking.

"Greetings, and welcome to Freddy Fazbear's Pizzaria! It is now 11:55 pm, and all evening personnel and security should be at their posts for the night shift. As per the Freddy Fazbear's safety policies and procedures, it is required that each night prior to closing shift that all personnel is reminded of the necessary precautions, procedures and any potential risks they may encounter-"

"Potential risks? What kind of potential risks?" Ralph exclaimed.

"-while on premises. At this point in time, the automatic timer of the security system has initiated the after hour settings on all systems in the restaurant. I will now explain the features of the after hour settings; at this time, the security system lockdown feature has been activated, and all entrances and exit ways to the building will be inaccessible until system reset at exactly 6 am. These entrances and exit ways include, but may not be limited to; all doors, windows, and air vents. In addition,-"

"Jimminy Jamminy, we can't even leave this place, we're trapped in here!" Felix cried.

"- the power save mode feature has been activated. Many electrical functions in the restaurant will be disabled as they are circuited to the main power source which has been shut down to conserve energy. These functions include, but are not limited to; all lighting with the exception of the security lighting, all telephone lines, wifi, television sets, kitchen equipment and appliances, and mechanical stage equipment which does not include animatronics."

"Great codes, if something happens we can't even call for help! My scanner and communicator have no signal!" Calhoun exclaimed.

"Finally, the animatronics themselves also have timers which coincide with the main timer to signal opening and closing hours. Once after hour settings are activated, all animatronics will enter 'free-mode' activation; as you may or may not know, the animatronics in 'free-mode' pose potential safety risks to individuals on the premises. Therefore, 'free-mode' activation on 'off hours' has been strictly forbidden since 1987, and can only be activated during after hours. 'Free-mode' is necessary to ensure proper functioning during day hours and must be activated for this reason despite potential safety risks. We ask evening personnel not to be alarmed if they witness the following behaviors from any or all animatronic characters during after hours, this includes, but is not limited to; traveling from room to room, emitting incomprehensible or garbled audio, interacting with objects such as moving boxes or opening doors, or any spastic or sudden movements.-"

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me." Ralph said flatly.

"- For this reason, we ask all personnel to refrain from entering into any area an animatronic may be in, and urge not to enter the following areas at any part of the shift; the main stage, party area, Pirate's Cove, or the animatronic storage room. If you need to use the kitchen or restroom facilities, it is advised you do so with caution and only if absolutely necessary. If any of the animatronic characters travel near or outside the security office, please remain calm and use the emergency door switches located just next to the doors to the east and west hallways. Do not attempt to do the following which includes, but is not limited to; antagonizing, engaging, attempt to damage or provoke the animatronic characters. Animatronic characters do have the potential to injure persons located on premises when in 'free-mode' as their primary programming is shut down. If in the event that personnel are injured, fatally wounded, or missing, a report will be filed within ninety days of the incident and an investigation will follow. Finally, please be aware of the features of the temporary power system that coincides with the power save mode activated after hours; your security lighting, emergency door switches, and security camera system are circuited to this source so they will continue to function as long as the power source does not run out. Please-"

"As long as it doesn't run out? What are we supposed to do when it DOES?" Ralph threw his hands up.

"-remain calm and stationary in the event the power source runs out before 6 am and avoid movement as much as possible during that time. Thank you for your cooperation and for your assistance to our family here at Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria, please remember these helpful tips and have a safe and happy night."

"Safe, happy? Are they serious?" Ralph forced out a laugh. "Well this is just great!"

Calhoun glanced at the clock as it read 11:59 pm. "Let me listen to more of this guy's recordings… at least he seems a bit more realistic than that lovely P.A." She pressed the button as Felix clung to her, glancing up at the poster fearfully and pointed at one character in particular, Chica.

"Tammy… i- it's a… a duck…" He whispered.

"Uh, Hello? Hello. Uh, well, if you're hearing this, you made it to night two! Um, congrats. I won't talk quite as long this time, since Freddy and his friends become more active as the week progresses. Uh, it might be a good idea to peek at those cameras while I talk, just to make sure everyone's in their proper place. So, interestingly enough, Freddy himself doesn't come off stage very often. I heard he becomes a lot more active in the dark though, so, hey, I guess that's one more reason to not run out of power, right? I also want to emphasize the importance of using your door lights. There are blind spots in your camera view, and those blind spots happen to be right outside of your doors. So if you can't find something, or someone on your cameras, be sure to check the door lights. You might only have a few seconds to react… not that you would be in any danger, of course. I'm not implying that. Also, check on the curtains in Pirate Cove from time to time. The character in there seems to be unique in that he becomes more active if the cameras remain off for long periods of time. I guess he doesn't like to be watched. I don't know. Anyway, I am sure you have everything under control. Um, talk to you soon!"

Calhoun looked to the others, where now even Vanellope seemed quite nervous. She glanced at the clock, and realized it was now midnight. "We need to keep our eyes open. Felix, get that laptop open and make sure there's nothing odd going on. I think the little squirt was right about one thing..." She glanced over at the west hall, noticing the light flickering. "We are NOT falling asleep tonight."


	2. A Different Kind of Game

Felix bit his lip, scrambling over to the laptop and flipping it open. Now, this was not like in game play, where there were five different nights, or levels, and each night was six "in-game" hours. No, this was after hours at the arcade as well as in game; it always was after hours in game anyhow, except for a small window from when it was two hours exactly before Mr. Litwak arrived in the morning to when the arcade actually opened. The physical arcade's security timer was set to shut the night mode off at, as you would have it, 6 am as well, and then Mr. Litwak arrived two hours later. This was because the air conditioning would pop on during the summer to make sure all the machinery wouldn't overheat. After the arcade closed, the security system kept its main power running until 12 as well, where then the AC would shut off, giving the machines a chance to cool down.

So, to the core four's dismay, unlike in game play, this was far worse in that they had to survive six physical hours, not in game hours. Also to their misfortune, the animatronics in this game were much like cybugs in that they did not know the difference between game play and end of day. Now, for Mike Schmidt, if he was attacked by an animatronic, because it was his game, he could simply respawn.

However, the core four did not have this luxury now.

"Where are they, where are they?" Felix muttered in a panic as he hurriedly rushed through all the cameras' locations. He jumped back with a yelp when the face of a duck; Chica, filled the screen. She had a jagged row of teeth filling her beak and wore a 'Let's Eat!' bib. "Jiminy, I'm never complaining about the ducks in MY game ever again!"

Calhoun leaned down to read the screen better while her husband hid behind her legs. "It's in the party room according to this," she recited coolly; this thing looked no scarier than a cybug in her eyes, but she knew it was just as dangerous.

Vanellope whined as she stayed curled up on Ralph's shoulder, and Ralph felt sick that he couldn't get her out of here. If anything happened to her, he'd never forgive himself.

"Guys, don't worry, if those things come in here, I can just punch them out," Ralph said as he held up one of his huge fists to remind them of his physical strength. "I took on Turbo when he was a giant cybug mutant, and surely he was more dangerous."

"It's foolish to assume the enemies' power before one even comes in contact with us," Calhoun stated as she kept her eye on the cameras.

Vanellope glanced up at Ralph, biting her lip. "Ralph, this is my fault..."

Ralph frowned deeply, hugging Vanellope closer. "No... you had no idea about this, kiddo. Don't worry, I'm going to protect you."

While Felix continued to switch through the cameras, Calhoun paced back and forth slowly, peeking out the doors to the east and west hallways. She could not rely on her scanner now due to the lack of wifi.

"How are we on power?" She asked.

Felix took a peek, biting his lip. "Already down to 85%... and it's barely after midnight."

Calhoun narrowed her eyes. "Say, Felix. Turn that laptop over to Vanellope for a second. I want to see if you can reset the power source with your hammer. If you can do that, we can just shut these doors and keep them shut."

"Jimminy Tammy, why didn't I think of that!" He smiled, hopping off the chair as he went over to the battery located under the desk. He tapped it lightly. "Vanellope, what does the battery level say now?"

"Uh... 100%?" Vanellope replied.

"Great codes, we're saved!" He smiled, and Calhoun smiled lightly and gave him a nod before closing both doors. "Now... you just keep tapping that battery when it gets low and we should make it through the night."

"When we get out of here, I'm gonna give that Mike guy a piece of my mind," Ralph grumbled as he stayed positioned in between both doors, ready to punch whatever might appear.

"I guess I know why he was so skittish now." Vanellope sighed as she shifted seating positions on Ralph's shoulder. "He didn't really want us going in here, but I insisted he take a break..." The normally feisty, out-spoken little girl was now on the verge of tears, blaming herself still for this.

"Calm down, rookie…" Calhoun said in a gentler voice than she used with her soldiers, putting a hand on the child's shoulder. "We've got Short Stack keeping the battery alive, Wreck-It as the muscle, and yours truly packing the heat." She patted her handgun that was strapped to her belt. "Plus, you can always glitch away from those freaks if you need to."

"Not that we're going to need to," Ralph added with an overconfident air. He didn't want Vanellope to think they really needed to worry about their lives. "We'll be fine so long as we stay here and we got Felix's hammer with us."

Vanellope smiled lightly. As the tension in the room began to dissipate, so did hers, and she hopped off of Ralph's shoulders. "Well, now that we're going to survive, we should have a party or something!"

"Well, let's not get TOO laid back…" Felix said. "We still have killer costumed assailants roaming around, so even though we're safe for now, we should still keep our eyes and ears open… we still don't know this game too well."

"Hm… he has a point. Just take a look at those cameras when you can, see if they're doing anything funny." Calhoun said.

Felix nodded, flipping open the laptop and switching between the different cameras. "Oh dear… the d- duck is right outside the restrooms…" He switched to the backstage/storage room camera, and jumped; he held his chest as Bonnie's face was staring right into the camera. "Gracious, that frightened me…"

Vanellope was once again playing with the small cupcake plushie from the desk, humming the Sugar Rush theme lightly. When she heard Felix gasp, her head popped up, furrowing a brow and hugging the plushie to her chest.

"What is it?" Calhoun asked, going over to him and scanning the laptop screen.

Felix's eyes widened. "I- I was just checking this hallway and I saw something move very quickly on the-"

His sentence was interrupted when there was a loud pounding on the door, just outside the west hallway. Ralph immediately went over to Vanellope, scooping her up to console her. Calhoun grit her teeth, slowly taking her gun off her belt and taking the safety off. The banging continued for a few more moments, and was followed by the sound of fading footsteps and "Dum dum, dum dum, dum dum…"

"Oh my land… that was close…" Felix breathed a sigh of relief. "Goodness! How did the power get so low already?" He tapped the battery lightly, bringing it up to full capacity.

Calhoun sighed, putting the safety back on her gun and placing it back on her belt. "I have a feeling they aren't going to just stand around and wait for us to come out. We have no idea what they're capable of."

For the next couple hours, they checked the cameras and Felix would tap the battery, allowing them to keep the doors shut. However, Felix and Calhoun still monitored the cameras, and every once and again they would hear the sounds of shuffling outside the door, sometimes one would pound on the door or make odd noises. They noticed that Freddy hadn't really moved too much, but Bonnie was a frequent visitor, Calhoun growling at the fact that she had been hanging around the west door and hallway for quite some time now.

Vanellope yawned as she stayed in the corner, being guarded by Ralph at all times. She rubbed at one eye sleepily, having been up for too long. "Is it six o'clock yet?"

"No," Felix told her with a frown, not looking away from the monitors. "We still have a few hours to go."

Vanellope groaned, pulling her hoodie over her eyes as if to try and sleep. "I am never offering to babysit a game ever again. This is getting boring."

"Would you rather the carnivorous fuzz balls come in here to liven things up?" Calhoun dryly asked as she switched positions from one door to the other.

Ralph groaned as he flexed his arms out in front of him. He was getting cramped in this room and needed more room to stretch out. "Hey, if nothing's going on, you think I can jog up and down the hall at least once?"

"Negative, Wreck-It." Calhoun glanced at him with a fierce look. "You lost your marbles? Those things will hear you and swarm to you faster than flies to honey!"

Ralph was about to groan in annoyance when Felix scream pierced the air, making them all jump. Vanellope furrowed her brows, staring at Felix as he pointed in her direction.

"Are you trying to scare the candy hearts out of me, Felix?" Vanellope exclaimed.

"V- Vanellope... b- behind you... the d- d- duck!" Felix cried.

Vanellope's eyes widened, slowly swiveling the chair around. And indeed, in the east window just behind her, Chika tilted her head to the side, twitching a bit as the light flickered a bit.

"Hi, kids! I- I'm Chi- i- ika the CHICKEN!"

Vanellope screamed, scrambling off the chair and threw herself at Ralph, who hugged her close. Calhoun narrowed her eyes, gritting her teeth. "You're not going to do anything to us standing out there." She said, taking out her gun for good measure.

They all jumped again when Chika thudded her head against the glass, twitching a bit. While everyone was concentrating on her, Vanellope heard shuffling just outside the west door, trying to get Ralph's attention as he growled lowly at Chika, cracking his knuckles. Felix was closest to the west door, and the small child bit her lip, hopping off of Ralph and taking Felix's arm, trying to drag him closer, to his horror, closer to "the duck." But this would not be the source of his horror in the next moment. Some scratching and shuffling was heard outside the west door, and Vanellope gasped when a small spark flashed from inside the west door switch. The light turned red, and before she could even warn anyone or scream, Bonnie was upon them. It happened so fast, the sound of Felix and Vanellope's shocked scream filled the room. Ralph did not give himself time to process how he went from anticipating the yellow animatronic's attack to Bonnie rampaging through the small office. He growled, grabbing onto the Bonnie who was surprisingly quite strong. He pulled her off of the helpless Felix before he could be hurt. Just when Ralph had a handle on her, he gasped as Vanellope screamed shrilly again, the sound of Calhoun firing her gun filling the room as Foxy dashed inside. However, to Calhoun's surprise, as fast as he came in, he simply scrambled around a bit, shoving Felix and Vanellope to the side before running out. Bonnie, who was shoved out by Ralph, scurried down the hall, not bothering to attack again. The ordeal left all four in a state of shock, their hearts pounding in their chests.

"Kid! Felix! Are you okay?" Ralph asked, embracing a tearful Vanellope to him.

"Shaken up... but alright..." Felix got to his feet. "How did this happen...?"

Calhoun grit her teeth, shoving past them and looking out the west door into the hallway. She noticed something then, looking to the wall just outside the door. She knelt down, realization coming to her and she pounded the wall in anger. "Damn it! That's how that freak got in... it tore off the panel cover and ripped the wiring out for the door. This is how they got in."

Felix brushed himself off. "Jimminy... well, that will be no problem... I can fix that in a jiffy! Let me just..." His voice faded as he felt for his hammer on his belt, but it wasn't there. He looked all around, looking back to the east hall window to see Chica was gone. He slowly turned to look at the others, their dread soon matching his.

"They took it." Calhoun spoke for him. "That was their plan. To distract us."

"Tammy... without my hammer I can't fix the door or keep the battery going!"

"So they leave us with two choices. Wait here like trapped mice to be killed... or go out and try to get the hammer back... and get killed one by one." Calhoun took out her gun, taking the safety off. She looked upon her husband for a few moments, glancing at Vanellope. "I will not stand here and wait for them to come kill me. I'm getting that hammer back."

"Tammy, no!" Felix leaped up to grab her hand, causing her to jerk back and look down at his worried expression. "I can't have you going out there and getting hurt!"

Calhoun blew her bangs out of her face, putting her free hand on her hip. "You got any better ideas? You need your hammer back regardless of the situation or you won't be able to work!"

"NOBODY'S going to be able to work period if we get killed by those things!" Ralph pointed out with an angry wave of his hand towards the left door. He cringed when he remembered Vanellope was still there, clinging to his leg out of fear. "Sorry, kid."

"This game quit being fun hours ago, and I for one would like to speed it up and LIVE through it." Calhoun took her hand out of Felix's and went to double-check her handgun.

"It was never fun to begin with," Felix said quietly, his eyes going back to the monitors. "Wait, that thing was a chicken? Sure looked like a duck..."

"Never mind that!" Ralph groaned impatiently. "Sarge, you go get the hammer while I stay here and guard the other two."

Calhoun nodded, glad that someone was agreeing with her. She leaned down to kiss Felix on the cheek. "I'll be fine, pint-size, I can handle myself."

"I-I know," Felix muttered quietly, still not wanting her to leave. He held his breath as he watched his wife step foot outside the door. "Be careful."


	3. Coming Apart at the Seams

As Calhoun left, her footsteps fading, Felix's heart sunk. He looked at the clock... 2:45 am. Felix decided to flip open the monitor, switching to the main stage. He gulped a bit, looking up to the others.

"What is it?" Ralph asked.

"The bear is gone." He flipped through a few cameras, jumping when he looked right up at the screen from the restrooms, the glow in his eyes like pin pricks. "I hate when they do that..."

Vanellope mustered up some bravery then, going over to Felix. "Here... let me watch those, you should keep watch with Ralph."

"No... Vanellope, you need to stay over there and keep safe. I'll be okay." Felix managed a small smile. While he had paused though, Vanellope saw something in one of the hallway cameras, tilting her head.

"What was-..." She stopped when Felix placed the laptop aside. "Felix, that poster in the hallway looked different than before…"

"We should try to conserve energy. We can look again in a bit, okay?" Felix went over to Ralph, who was keeping guard by the west door. "Anything, brother?"

"No..." He sighed. "I'm starting to think we should have all gone together. It's-" The sound of Vanellope screaming cut him off, Ralph snapping to attention. She was staring at the chair, backing up quite a bit as she shrieked. "Kid, what's the matter?"

"He's staring right at me, I dunno how he got in! Don't let him get me Ralph!" Vanellope cried as a series of words and the animatronic's faces flashed before her eyes, Freddy's veiny, realistic eyes staring into her code.

Ralph furrowed a brow, seeing nothing but an empty office chair facing them. "Vanellope, I don't see any-" Vanellope began to scream again, hitting the air as if something was trying to attack her. She passed out, glitching quite a bit as she did so. "Vanellope?" Ralph shook her. "Vanellope!"

Felix went over to her, feeling her forehead. "Ralph, she doesn't feel well... her codes are spiraling out of control!"

"We have to get her out of here! If we don't, her codes will go into shock!" Ralph stopped when they heard gunfire in the distance followed by metallic screaming. After a few moments, there was silence. Felix dashed over to the cameras, and he gasped, his eyes widening in horror when he saw Foxy dragging someone behind the curtain.

"Tammy!" Felix cried. He then jumped when Freddy's face appeared right in front of the camera, playing his Toreador tune.

"What is it?!" Ralph demanded as he kept a hold of Vanellope in one fist, his other hand up ready to wreck anything that came inside the room. "What happened?"

"The b- bear is right down the hallway, they did something to Tammy!" Felix gasped, his hand to his heart. "Ralph, I have to get her! The fox has her!"

"Are you nuts? If you manage to get past the bear, then something else will get you!"

"She's my wife, Ralph!" Felix shouted, his fists clenched by him and his eyes tearing up. "What if it were Vanellope out there, huh?"

Ralph started to argue, but the look on Felix's face stopped. He was shaking like a leaf, obviously as frightened as the rest of them, but he was wearing that determined, stubborn look that almost mimicked his wife's. Ralph growled under his breath, not liking the thought of them getting more separated.

"Felix, if you die out there or get hurt, you won't-"

"I know that!" Felix wiped his brow with one hand, trying to pull himself together. "Look, I'm quick on my feet, remember? I can dash and hop out of the way, find my hammer, find Tammy, then be back here for you and Vanellope."

Ralph sighed deeply, giving him a nod. "Be careful. I'm going to watch over Vanellope."

Felix gave him a hint of a smile. "You know it, partner." Felix said, and in an instant he was gone, the sound of his bouncing fading. Silence filled the room with the exception of Vanellope's breathing for a good ten minutes until she groaned lightly, sitting up.

"Kid! Are you okay? What happened to you?" Ralph exclaimed.

Vanellope rubbed her eyes, slowly glancing over to the office chair before looking up at Ralph. "I saw something... it was one of them, but different."

"Huh? One of what? Look, Calhoun's been hurt, and Felix-"

"We have to go after them, Ralph." Vanellope cut him off.

"No. I promised I would protect you and I'm going to stay put in this room with you." Ralph insisted.

"You don't understand, Ralph. He spoke to me. He said his name is Golden Freddy. He said he's always in pain so it's hard for him to move too much. He said that the others won't hurt me because I'm little, like them. He said... that they want me to watch my friends suffer... he said... he wants me to help everyone suffer... he said... he said... he wants me to help him leave."

Ralph's eyes slowly widened as he listened to Vanellope speak. "Kid... you're scaring me. Stop talking like that. No one is going to die here."

Vanellope looked up at Ralph. "But they already did. They're all dead."

Ralph grit his teeth. "Hey! Felix and Calhoun are NOT dead! They are going to be fine!"

"No Ralph, all of THEM! The monsters! He told me they all died here!" She screamed, holding her head as she whined lightly. She looked up at him, tilting her head a bit as she plopped down in his hand, her arms flopping listlessly on her sides. She smiled lightly up at him. Before Ralph could say anything, he felt something attack him from behind, dropping Vanellope for a moment to fight back. As he faced Bonnie yet again, he heard glass shattering behind him as Chika broke the east window, reaching in to slap the door switch so she could run in. He shoved Bonnie away from him, but it was too late... Chika snatched up Vanellope from off the floor, emitting a high pitched giggle as she ran down the east hallway. The child had not even attempted to run as she was snatched up, as she had been sitting listlessly on the floor. As Ralph cried out to her, for a moment, he remembered that he thought he saw her pupils dilate just before Bonnie attacked him.

No, he must have been mistaken.

Felix had just arrived at Pirate's Cove, tiptoeing around the perimeter of it while keeping his eyes peeled for any movements. He felt so vulnerable without his hammer, his hand habitually reaching for the empty holster that was on his belt.

"Tammy!" he whispered, his hair standing on end under his cap. He gulped and tugged at his shirt collar when he didn't get an answer. "Tammy, please answer me..."

A soft groan nearly made him crawl out of his skin, jumping a good six feet in the air. "Oh my lands!" he gasped as he landed, both hands pressed to his chest. "Tammy, is that you? Please don't be the fox... or that duck-chicken thing..."

Felix quietly entered the tent, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness. He heard the groan again and this time he recognized it as Calhoun's. He ran over to where he saw her resting against the back corner, shrouded by darkness. Her head was bleeding on one side, which made Felix feel useless since he didn't have his hammer.

"Tammy, it's me, I'm here to get you out of here!" He hugged her to him, careful not to upset her head wound. "Come on, can you stand?"

"Fo-... fox..."

"I know, it must have gotten you by surprise."

It was then that he heard the unmistakable sound of a child screaming. "Vanellope! Oh no, something must've ambushed Ralph!"

Calhoun grunted, holding her head as she sat up. She took in a deep breath. "Felix... I know where they have it."

"H- Have what, Tammy?"

"Your... hammer." She sighed a bit. "I ran down here and saw the fox... when I saw he had the hammer, I shot at him. I caught him off guard and I thought I had it. But the bear... he grabbed it before I could. Then the fox got me from behind... during the struggle I saw the bear take the hammer and..."

As she remembered the incident, she saw Freddy drop the hammer into his mouth, slowly turning his head to stare at her eerily.

"They would have killed me... but something seemed to distract them." She took her handgun, handing it to Felix. "You have to get it back. I'll stay here and wait it out. Ralph and Vanellope may need your help."

"But I can't just leave y-"

His sentence was interrupted by her lips pressing against his in an urgent manner, as if it was the last one she'd ever give him. Felix barely had time to register the kiss before Calhoun shoved him away from her, her usual fierce look having returned.

"Go, I'll be fine," she insisted as she held her head and slid down to the floor in a resting position. "I handle vicious, man-eating monsters all day, remember?"

Felix wanted to say that at least she was in her own game where she could regenerate when she was around cybugs- not to mention, she'd have plenty of ammo there- but he had a feeling that Calhoun wouldn't have wanted to hear that, much less argue more with him. He felt a lump in his throat as he nodded, sticking the gun in his belt where his hammer normally resided.

"I'll be back," he promised before taking off down the hallway where he'd thought he'd heard the screams.

Meanwhile, while Felix hopped off in pursuit of Freddy, Ralph was looking around frantically for Vanellope. He screamed angrily as he heard Chika's high pitched laughter echo from down the hallway. He snapped to attention suddenly when he heard a familiar sound, sighing with relief; the sound of 8-bit hopping. "Felix!" He cried out, eventually finding him.

"Ralph! Are you alright?" Felix asked.

"No, Vanellope, they took her!"

"Oh my lands, we have to find her!"

"Did you find your hammer? Where is Calhoun?"

"No... Ralph, she said the bear, er what was his name, um-"

"Felix!" Ralph exclaimed.

"Alright alright, the bear ATE my hammer. We have to get it out of him to-"

"Oh you have got to be KIDDING me!" Ralph threw his hands in the air. "We don't have time to go digging for your hammer, we have to save our friends!" Ralph held his head, plopping to the floor as his voice began to shake. "She must be so scared..."

"Look Ralph... the power is probably about to run out. If we hurry, and look through the security cameras, maybe she will be in one of them and we can at least find her."

"Right... let's go." Ralph replied, the two hurrying back to the office without complication. The power was now down to about 10%, and Ralph watched over Felix's shoulder anxiously as he flipped through the cameras.

"Wait, go back to the... the janitor's closet!" Ralph exclaimed.

Felix gasped when he did. It was almost like a bird's eye view, and they could see Vanellope in the small closet, her head on her knees as she hugged them, crying.

"This is all my fault..." She whimpered.

Ralph gasped. "We have to go there, NOW!" Felix nodded in response, the two running off. As they did, the camera remained on the janitor's closet after they ran off, not bothering to shut the laptop as she continued to cry.

"I should have saved my friends... I should have saved them... I didn't want them to di- i- i- I should have saved them..." Vanellope began to glitch eerily, her voice deepening at some points of her speech. "I didn't want them to-" The camera suddenly became fuzzy for a quick moment before coming back into view, Vanellope's face now right in the camera as she shook it violently. "DIIII- I- I- III- IE!" Her eyes were completely black, and the footage was cut off as the temporary power source died, the entire restaurant pitch black.

Ralph and Felix both jumped when the power went out, both of them looking at each other- or rather, where they knew each other to be at since they couldn't see very well in the dark.

"Oh no!" Felix cried, his hands going to his mouth. "We left the laptop on when we left the office!"

"It doesn't really matter now, does it? We'd be fighting for our lives regardless of where we were."

"You have a point there, brother."

In the distance, they could hear Vanellope's crying which alerted them to go run in that direction. "We're coming, kid!" Ralph called out. Every nerve in his body felt like it was on fire, his survival instincts kicked into high gear. "If those things hurt her, I swear-"

"Don't even think about that!"

They finally got to the closet that they had seen Vanellope in earlier on the monitor and the little girl was thankfully still huddled there, hugging herself loosely and rocking back and forth. They could just barely see her in the dark.

"Vanellope!" Ralph wanted to cry with joy that she was still alive. "You scared the dickens out of us!"

"Ralph!" She blindly leaped towards him, awkwardly clutching his leg and crying into his pants. "I d- don't what's going on. It feels l- like someone else is i- in me..."

Ralph furrowed a brow, gently lifting the child's head to look at him. "Vanellope... what do you mean by that...?"

Vanellope sniffled for a few moments before her pupils dilated, completely filling her eyes as she grinned eerily at Ralph. "It's me..." She whispered, pointing past Ralph. In the dark, they could barely make out a poster that was glitching a bit, between Freddy and Golden Freddy. Ralph glanced back at her, scooping her up.

"Those horrible things did something to her...!" Ralph exclaimed. Just then, Felix gasped and moved closer to Ralph as glowing eyes began to surround them, the sounds of eerie laughter, murmuring, and Freddy's Toreador theme filling the air. Ralph's eyes widened when he felt Vanellope slip from his hand, and he noticed that two small, glowing pinpricks appeared within the darkness of her eyes.

"We will know the joy of creation... to create the happiness and wonder in the day that was taken from us... to create the fear and suffering that was inflicted on us... when all light, and hope... go out." Vanellope spoke monotonously.

Ralph felt Felix being torn from his side, Freddy dragging him back. Ralph tried to go after him, but he felt hands fall upon him, and despite his strength, Foxy, Chica and Bonnie were all quite strong and sizable, and when Ralph felt a sharp pain on his head, the sound of Felix screaming faded out into nothingness.


	4. Dark Secrets Revealed

Ralph's head spun as he regained consciousness a short while later. The back of his skull felt like someone had hammered it repeatedly, and he groaned painfully as he pushed himself up. His hand went to his head to feel it, wincing at the goose-egg sized knot there.

"Vanellope?" he asked hoarsely, coughing as he straightened up. "Felix?"

He heard nothing except the sounds of his own footsteps as he stumbled in the dark, the power still out. It suddenly crossed his mind that the animatronics could have given him a permanent game over just now but they didn't. He wondered why that was, or if perhaps they had mistakenly thought they'd killed him and then left him alone afterwards.

"Guys?" he whispered again, and this time he heard a sharp "Shhh!" Ralph turned in the direction he'd heard the noise in, his senses coming back to him.

"Wreck-It, over here!"

Ralph sighed in relief as he heard Calhoun's tired voice. He walked in her direction, careful not to trip. "Sarge, I lost Felix and Vanellope, I have no idea where they are!"

"Quiet, you don't want them coming back, do you?" the sergeant snapped quietly. "One of them got the better of me earlier and nearly lobbed my head off. I'm just now feeling up to moving around a bit."

Ralph bit his lip, barely able to see anything even with his vision adjusted to the darkness. When they heard footsteps approaching, they looked towards the curtain, barely able to see it move and they heard someone being dragged in. The sound of someone murmuring and whimpering was heard.

"Felix…? Felix!" Calhoun whispered sharply, crawling over and groping the air until she felt a gloved hand. "I'm here… come on." She groaned as she pulled him over to where they were huddled.

"Felix, what happened, where is Vanellope?" Ralph asked anxiously.

"… it… it was awful… what happened to them… was awful…" Felix whispered.

"What are you talking about? Where is Vanellope?!" Ralph exclaimed. He gasped lightly when four pairs of glowing eyes appeared before them, and they reflected onto a fifth pair which were completely black. Vanellope approached them, pointing to Felix.

"He has seen our end and our beginning. He has heard our eternal screaming… he has felt our torment… he has smelled the scent of our lingering death… he has tasted the fear forever in our souls…" Vanellope whispered.

Ralph grit his teeth, his voice shaking as he began to shout. "Y- You leave her alone! You can do whatever you want to me… Vanellope didn't do anything to you monsters! Stop whatever it is you're doing to her and let her go!"

"Us… monsters? No… we will show you… and the lady… who the real monsters were…"

"N- No… please… don't let them see…!" Felix cried out, but it was too late. Both Ralph and Calhoun began to see what Vanellope had seen right before Golden Freddy overtook her. When their vision refocused, Ralph and Calhoun could hear a music box winding up for a moment before playing, and they were in the restaurant, but it was a different time. It was if someone was leading them visually through a story… a story, as they would soon find… that would explain the origin, the seed of the evil they had reckoned with that night. They suddenly heard multiple voices speaking in unison, children.

_"Do you see us…? Watch what happened to us… see how we died… see how we were senselessly murdered… see us fall… one by one… see who murdered us… who failed to helped us… it is he we still seek… it is he who took our lives… it is he who took our innocence…"_

A little girl with raven hair ran down the west hallway, tearful. She wore a purple shirt, running up to the west door and trying it to find it was locked. She looked around frantically, noticing the panel to the door controls on the other side of the door. She crouched down, whimpering and trying to pull it off. She was no older than fourteen, grunting as she tried to pry the metal covering off. Before she could succeed, she felt hands upon her, her killer picking her up off the floor. She screamed shrilly, but it was ended abruptly when her throat was sliced, the girl sliding down the wall. Her eyes became bloodshot, almost red, as she held her throat, making soft groaning and gurgling noises as she died.

Another little girl who had been waiting in the east hall for her friend to come back to her, a blonde girl wearing a pink shirt, heard the first little girl's scream and gasped lightly, her eyes wide as she covered her mouth. She heard footsteps approaching, running down the east hallway towards the office. She ran to the window, looking inside to see the security guard whistling and listening to music, reading a magazine. She started banging on the window, screaming for the security guard to help. Rather than get his attention, it received unwanted attention by the mysterious assailant, and the girl felt herself being dragged back, his hands grabbing her mouth, and she screamed painfully as one hand pulled the top of her head up, and the other yanked the bottom of her mouth in one swift motion, essentially breaking off her entire bottom jaw and her neck. He shoved the dead girl aside, her lower jaw flopped open.

Meanwhile, a third child, a little boy with red, bushy hair and freckles, hummed to himself lightly to try to calm himself down. Behind him stood a familiar out of order animatronic, motionless as the child hid behind the curtain. When he heard his two friends being murdered, he peeked out from behind the curtain, feeling like a coward. When he heard heavy footsteps, he gasped quietly, retreating back behind it. He waited for the footsteps to fade, before peeking out once more. When it remained quiet, he slowly came out, standing just outside the curtain.

"I have to make a run for it…" The boy whispered to himself before sprinting down the west hall. He gasped, seeing the raven haired girl there, dead. He started to pound on the door, trying to get the security guard's attention. He suddenly was pulled back, hissing when he felt the sting of a blade stab him in the arm. He tried to fight back, not giving up despite being stabbed multiple times in the chest and arms. He fell to his knees, but adrenaline pumped through his veins as he watched the killer begin to drag the raven haired girl down the hall. He lunged for him, crying loudly as he revealed quite an overbite. The killer took his knife, stabbing the boy through his right eye, and he fell instantly, dead.

As this was happening, the last two children huddled together on the main stage, hiding behind Freddy, Chica and Bonnie. They listened to the carnage the entire time in silent horror, mourning their friends.

"He hasn't come in here yet…" One boy spoke. The one hiding behind Freddy had chocolate brown hair, and the other boy, slightly older, had dirty blonde hair.

Suddenly, they heard the red hair boy cry out before silence fell again. "I hear screaming…" the brunette haired boy said as he choked out a quiet sob. "We have to go help them…"

"O- Okay… here's what we'll do. We stay together, okay? We stay together, and… okay let's just… move slowly that way…" the blonde whispered.

The boys began to crawl across the stage quietly until they heard voices and footsteps on the other side of the party room.

"Who is that?" The brunette whispered.

"It's the security guard… oh no… he's not gonna help us… he's helping the other guy…!"

The security guard had finally been roused from the office and his music from when the red haired boy pounded on the door. When he saw the bloodshed he was horrified what his co-worker had done, but the killer made sure that the security guard wouldn't rat on him.

"They find out I did this… you'll get life in prison too. You're an accomplice or you neglected your post. Either way, you're sunk. Understand…?" The killer said to him, his voice gravelly.

"O- Okay, okay…" The security guard answered shakily. "What… what are we… what do we do with them? What do we-"

"We stuff them. In the costumes. We keep them there. We'll deal with them before opening."

The boys watched in horror as the two men dragged the three bodies into the backstage area.

"Oh no… our friends…" The brunette cried.

"Look… we have to get to the office while they're bringing them into the back room… the door is bound to be open… now move, move!"

They ran down the hallway into the now open office. The brunette tried to close the doors, but the switches weren't working, both doors stuck open now.

"The door buttons aren't working…!"

"Just stand there and keep watch… I'm going to call for help, okay?" The blonde said, the brunette nodding and watching out of the doors. After a few moments, he gasped.

"I hear something!"

"Can you close the door?"

"No, they're still not working!"

"O- Okay, just- yes, hello? Yes please help, we're stuck here and our- n- no, NO! YOU LEAVE HIM ALONE!" The blonde cried out as the killer grabbed hold of the brunette. He grabbed a wrench that was kept in the office, hitting the killer hard on the head. He knocked the killer off balance, but it was too late for his friend. He knelt over the brunette boy who was bleeding profusely from his chest. "No… no…" He began to weep. "I was supposed to protect you…" He glanced over at the phone, the operator still speaking. He dashed over to it, grabbing the phone and finished the call. When he hung up, he was about to leave the office when the killer appeared before him, back on his feet and he felt a sharp pain in his gut as he was stabbed. He groaned in pain, gasping for air as he slumped in the chair. He stared up at the killer weakly, darkness creeping into his expression. "I will get you back…" He whispered to the killer. "I will get you… for what you did to us."

The killer walked out of the room, leaving the two boys inside. The blonde boy glanced around as he heard sirens wailing in the distance, and the rest was a blur to him before he died in the hospital from his wounds mere hours later.

Ralph and Calhoun's vision darkened after this was shown to them, only the one child's voice speaking, the last to die.

_"I stayed in that chair and looked upon my best friend… I may not have died there… but my soul was already gone the moment my friends were taken from me… now… we take revenge upon the security guard that did not help us… we take revenge upon them even after we took him… we speak in tongues that frighten the living… we want them to be scared like we were scared… we want them to suffer like we suffered… we want them to die… like we died…"_

They both snapped back to reality, both of them gasping with Felix when Vanellope emitted a high pitched, inhuman scream, throwing her head back. Ralph furrowed his brows deeply, shaking his head.

Now he understood what they wanted… all three of them did… but there had to be some way to put these tormented souls to rest, to end their chain of murders.


	5. One Final Effort

"That's a sad sob story and all…" Calhoun began firmly, though deep down she did feel pity for the children who had been brutally murdered. "… but this revenge shtick isn't solving any problems. You're killing innocent people, and two wrongs don't make a right."

Freddy eyes flashed brightly, his mouth opening slightly to reveal the endoskeleton's metallic teeth. A cheerful tune began to play from him, jarring in the grim atmosphere they were in.

"I- It's going to attack!" Felix screamed in an embarrassingly shrill voice.

Ralph growled under his breath. "I've had it with all this!"

He let out a yell as he raised his fist and ran straight into the large bear, tackling it with both hands. He screamed at the top of lungs as he wrestled with it, using one hand to keep its mouth away from his face while the other ripped and tore at the fur suit. Felix and Calhoun were shouting at him, and Freddy's mechanical parts whirred and hissed as they were dislocated from their home. The musical tune began to alter into a slower, disjointed version of itself. Ralph ignored it all, continuing to pound and destroy everything his fist touched.

He only stopped when a glimmer of gold shined in the underbelly of the bear, and Ralph instantly recognized it. Felix's hammer! With a grunt, he grabbed the tool and threw it out towards Felix.

"My hammer!" The handyman hopped over quickly and snatched it up, holding it against his chest protectively.

The other animatronics suddenly went ballistic, the three of them upon Ralph. Calhoun grabbed Vanellope, Felix quickly tapping her. A darkness left her, and the child shook her head as she snapped out of it.

"What..." She suddenly saw Ralph being attacked, Chika and Bonnie holding his arms while Foxy was lunging in for the kill. "RALPH!" She shrieked, Foxy stopping for a moment, distracted by how she was released from Golden Freddy's control. Calhoun, now healed from Felix as well, took this opportunity to shoot at Foxy as he went to attack her. Vanellope grabbed her hand, glitching her outside of Pirate's Cove and into the hallway. She glitched back in, shouting to Felix. "Go to the office and fix the battery, I have to save Ralph!"

Ralph growled as he punched Chika hard, her lower jaw breaking off and skidding across the floor. Vanellope rushed in, making a beeline for Ralph when she was grabbed by Foxy, twitching and sparking from being shot at several times.

"Do- o- o- on't lea- a- ave us..." Foxy whispered.

Vanellope narrowed her eyes. "You may be helping your friends... well I'm gonna help mine!" She glitched out of his grip, hurrying over to Ralph and clinging to him before glitching him to the hallway. As the two ran, the animatronics ran after them, their metallic screeching echoing through the halls. Ralph scooped up the child, Felix waving them on from the office. Ralph skidded to a stop and hurried in, before closing the door, a huge thud heard on the other side as all the animatronics shrieked shrilly.

"Are you two alright?" Calhoun exclaimed as Felix tapped Ralph's wounds.

"Yeah..." Ralph smiled at Vanellope. "Feel okay, kid?"

"Well... I still feel kinda funny... but I think I'll be okay."

"We have to check her code room when we return, Ralph. Traces of whatever got to her earlier may still be there."

Ralph sighed worriedly, scooping Vanellope up and hugging her. "They may have not been able to save their friends... and for that, I feel awful sorry... but I'm not going to let anything happen to us. We are going to get out of here."

Calhoun smiled lightly. "It's 5:02. We have less than an hour to go."

An HOUR?!" Felix started to hyperventilate, wringing his hands together. "How are we gonna survive another hour in this nightmare!"

Calhoun took his hat off and made him breathe into it in lieu of a paper bag. "Calm down, short-stack, we got your hammer back to keep the battery up, remember?"

Vanellope yawned, still being held against Ralph's chest protectively. "I hope Freddy and the others don't do this EVERY night. What if they get out of the game and wander around the arcade?"

"Eh, let's not think about that just yet," Ralph grimaced, not sure if he could deal with the stress.

"I agree," Calhoun nodded. "Let's focus on surviving the rest of this hour and getting Princess Cavity here back to Sugar Rush to survey her code. One thing at a time."

Vanellope rested her head against Ralph's forearm as he held her in his hand. "Ralph, what happened to me...? I... I remember they put me in the janitor's closet... and then everything went dark."

Ralph sighed. "They did something to your code... made you do and say things... like you were one of them. But don't worry... they aren't going to do another thing."

"I saw something... he looked like the creepy bear but... creepier. He was yellow, and had no eyes. He talked to me in a really deep, weird voice but I still understood him. He told me I was the key to his freedom." She gasped after a few moments, swatting the air. "I still see it, Ralph! I still see the scary faces and the words!" She hugged the cupcake toy to her, whimpering.

Calhoun narrowed her eyes. "Whatever it was that triggered that is still latched to her code even after Felix tapped her with the hammer. It's just going to manifest again."

"Jiminy, I hope that my fixing her didn't cause it to permanently attach itself to her code," Felix said worriedly, having calmed now.

"A golden bear?" Ralph raised a brow in confusion. "I hadn't seen that around. You sure that's what you saw, kid?"

The little girl started getting upset again. "Yes, I'm sure, I'm not lying!"

"Okay okay, I believe you," the wrecker said quickly. He was worried that any emotional outbursts from her would cause whatever it was inside her code to glitch her up beyond repair.

Calhoun studied the monitors again, her lips pursed in thought. "Look at this." Everyone went over to see what she was pointing at on the screen. A poster of Freddy was attached to the wall but something seemed off about it. "This used to be a normal poster for the Freddy that we've been seeing, but now it's different."

Vanellope glanced at the golden bear and whined, hiding her face against Ralph's chest. "That's it! That's the golden Freddy I saw!"

Vanellope turned, screaming when she once again saw Golden Freddy sitting in the chair. Now that all four had seen the poster, they all saw him, and they froze. It was staring right at Vanellope, speaking in a deep voice. When he disappeared in a flash, his roar was heard, and Vanellope began to glitch and scream as she had done the first time.

"No!" Ralph cried, going over to Vanellope. "Leave her alone! What do you want from her?"

Vanellope's eyes darkened, smiling eerily at Ralph. "Everyone will know our suffering... and we will know the joy of creation..."

Calhoun jumped as pounding was heard on the walls and doors, taking her gun out. Chika was trying to break through the window that Felix fixed, and Bonnie was once again tampering with the wiring outside. Suddenly, the west door flew open again, Bonnie and Foxy rushing in. Foxy grabbed Felix, and Calhoun cried out in horror as she shot at him. Foxy opened his mouth wide to devour Felix, and Bonnie wrestled with Ralph, trying to take Vanellope. Felix cried, bracing for the worst.

Then... nothing.

Calhoun stared in confusion as the animatronics stopped all movement. She shook her head as they began to stand up straight, their damaged costumes repairing themselves. She whipped her head over to the clock.

6 am.

Felix grunted as Foxy dropped him, and they robotically began to file out, going down the hall to their positions. They shielded their eyes when all the window and door covers began to rise and retract, letting in the early morning light.

"Thank you once again for your service to the Feddy Fazbear family. The night shift is now complete, and all systems have reset for open. I now ask the night shift to exit the premises in a calm, orderly fashion to make way for the morning shift. Have a wonderful day, see you tomorrow night."

The announcement sounded, and the core four looked at each other.

They had survived.


	6. All Is Well That Ends Well?

After a few moments, the core four embraced, emotions high as it began to sink in that they had made it through this hellish night alive. It took a few moments for them to adjust to their new sense of relief, before realizing they wanted to be as far away from this place as possible.

Vanellope stood, looking at herself. "I... I feel better..."

"Y-yeah that's great, now let's get out here!" Ralph exclaimed.

Ralph grabbed Vanellope with one hand and Felix with the other, taking off in a run for the entrance. Calhoun jogged behind, continuously looking back over her shoulder to make sure the animatronics weren't playing a trick on them. At last they reached the small train that would lead them back to Game Central Station, all of them panting for breath and relaxing fully for the first time in hours.

"Vanellope, next time you make a friend…" Ralph began as he rested his eyes. "… make sure you get the details of their game before inviting yourself and the rest of us over."

"You don't have to tell me twice." Vanellope replied tiredly.

The train reached its stop, allowing the weary travelers to exit. Ralph actually couldn't wait for the Surge Protector to stop him, as if that would be final confirmation that they had indeed escaped the horrors of Freddy's.

"I still want to have a chat with Mr. Schmidt," Calhoun stated as she brushed hair out of her eyes. "Should've given us a warning of sorts before we went barreling in there."

Mike, meanwhile, was feeling nice and refreshed, sighing as he stretched his arms. "Between Dr. Mario's session and a full night's rest, nothing's gonna shake me up now!" He gagged as he was suddenly grabbed by Calhoun, holding him by his shirt collar. She shook him a bit, staring daggers at him.

"Just what do you think you were doing putting us in that HELL HOLE?"

"Calhoun, language!" Ralph whined, covering Vanellope's ears.

"Wh- What are you... l- look, I tried to warn you, I tried to tell you about the animatronics!" Mike exclaimed. "How do you think I feel? All I have to console me is the phone guy, who ended up getting his!"

"How do you mean?" Calhoun questioned. "Got his for what?"

"He was the security guard who failed to save those children. He got off, scott free, because he said he was trying to subdue the killer when he was knocked out by him. But it was all a lie… he was a coward, and tried to help the killer cover up the murder so he wouldn't be murdered himself. Well… in the end, he got what he deserved. He kept working for some time after that and he noticed the animatronics acting up. Left him messages, paranormal stuff. He put in his two weeks, and he left those messages for the next security guard... ME. But the day before his last day... they finally got to him."

"Oh my lands," Felix gulped, his hands going to his heart. Vanellope hung her head, feeling sad about all the deaths.

"Save the melodramatics for someone who cares," Calhoun spat, still obviously infuriated. "You want to make friends around here, you warn people about how your game can give them a Game Over forever!"

"I'm sorry, okay, I- I tried to tell you but-"

"But I wouldn't even let him talk," Vanellope sighed softly. "It's all my fault, like I kept saying."

Mike scuffed his shoe on the floor, avoiding everyone's gaze. "No, I should've manned up and insisted that no one enter the game. I was just wanting a few hours away from that place. It really gets to you after a while."

"Yeah, no kidding," Ralph snorted dryly.

"I SHOULD have mentioned the dangers, but you guys..." Mike glanced up to view the gang with an air of admiration. "You guys looked like you could handle it. I mean, an armed soldier with battle stats? A guy with giant fists? I didn't think you'd have any problems."

Vanellope stepped up to him. "We fought them as much as we could... but they fought too. They almost scrambled my brain up for good!"

"Huh? How?" Mike asked.

"That yellow bear... he-"

Mike gasped. "Golden Freddy? You saw him?"

"Yeah..." The child nodded.

"Well... I suppose the game reset resolved everything... Golden Freddy makes the game stop if players see him."

Vanellope thought. "I wish there was some way you didn't have to deal with them anymore."

Mike shrugged, an exhausted look on his face. "If I don't deal with them, our game will go out of order and we'll get unplugged. Then I'd be out of a job and a home..."

Calhoun eased up, her posture relaxing. "Listen, kid, I know it's got to be a tough job dealing with those things as much as you have. I know how it is, I put up with man-eating space bugs all day that don't quit even after the arcade closes. Avatars like us, we have a special job to do. It takes commitment and real bravery to live the way we do."

"Me, brave?" Mike chuckled wryly at that. "That's the last thing I am. I ditched my game on a little kid from a candy game for Freddy's sake."

Out of the corner of her eye, Calhoun noticed that the FPS bot from her game was being sent back to Hero's Duty from some repairs it had received. She suddenly got an idea, smirking a bit. "Hm… hey Mike? I think I'm gonna have a little talk with Surge Protector… maybe we can solve your little problem after all."

It had been a couple days since that fateful night when the core four encountered their worst foes yet. Mike was smiling, relaxing a bit at the penthouse with Felix and Ralph.

"Feeling okay, Mike?" Felix smiled.

"Oh, you have no idea… I have to thank your wife again for replacing me with that first person shooter… well, first person security guard in this case. Even though I don't have my own game, this is WAY better than before. I'll take it." Mike said.

"Glad to hear it… I wouldn't want to go back there either." Ralph chimed in.

"The players don't even notice the difference, from what I've heard! It's perfect!" Mike exclaimed, smiling. "Still… it would be a disaster if any of the animatronics ever got out."

"Speaking of which… Ralph, has anyone checked Vanellope's code?" Felix asked.

"Nah… Calhoun was going to but the little squirt insisted she was feeling fine. Vanellope would let us know if something was wrong." Ralph replied.

"Well… alright. But if she starts acting up, you have to let one of us know."

"She'll be okay. She's a tough kid, she was fine after what she went through with King Candy and she's doing fine now too. She's already back on the roster after taking the last couple days off!"

"Well, that's good to hear. I think I'll come with you later to visit her." Mike smiled. "If… that's okay with you, of course."

"Sure! You're one of our pals now, Mike. Besides, maybe now you won't be so scared of food themed places once you visit Sugar Rush enough." Ralph smiled as the three hung out together.

All seemed to be well, the core four and Mike getting back into a normal routine. Mike stayed at the penthouse and was used for an extra so some of the nicelanders could take a rest here and there. Players didn't really tell the difference, and though it was a bit nerve-wracking during gameplay, it was a huge improvement from where he came from. Mike fit in perfectly and he enjoyed his new role.

Surge Protector placed special security features on the Five Nights at Freddy's game, in that if any of the animatronics somehow got out, an emergency alarm would go off to help prevent fatalities. With this established, all characters, especially the core four and Mike, could all breathe a sigh of relief. It seemed like as quickly as this threat was placed upon them, it had been lifted.

After a long day of racing, Vanellope sat in her room within the candy castle, humming lightly to herself. She sat on her bed, stopping after a while and smiling at something.

"Princess?" Sour Bill called to her from the doorway, her back facing him. "Would you like some evening dessert?" The child turned to look at him, and he tilted his head. "Oh, is that a new toy, princess?" He asked, pointing to a small cupcake plushie sitting on her bed.

"Yeah, a friend gave it to me." She smiled lightly. "After what happened that night... Mike gave it to me as an apology." She then turned to face the green candy orb. "What'cha got for dessert, Sour Bill?" Vanellope asked.

"We've got the usual, but the special for tonight is an assortment of cheese cake flavors." He replied dryly as he read from off a list. "The flavors are-"

"I'll just see what they are for myself, okay? My mouth is already watering!" She beamed, hopping off the bed as Sour Bill shrugged, heading down the hall.

In the doorway, Vanellope stopped for a moment, slowly turning to look at the cupcake plushie on the bed.

"Vanellope, hurry up!" Candlehead called from down the hallway. This snapped Vanellope out of her trance.

"Coming!" She smiled, heading down the corridor.

No one noticed of course, but as she skipped towards the dining hall, her reflection in the pictures and mirrors hanging from the walls revealed not just the child, but something following close behind her, its movements limp, but quick.

It was a yellowed, empty bear costume donning a black hat and with soulless, hollow eyes.


End file.
